Geelong midfielder James Kelly will line up against the Dogs. Picture: Michael Klein Source: Herald Sun
GEELONG is set to welcome back midfielder James Kelly for Saturday night's clash with the Western Bulldogs, but he won't be the only comeback this weekend.
Athletic tall Nathan Vardy will play his first game of the year after overcoming a groin injury that has hampered him since before the start of the NAB Cup.
Kelly has missed the past two games with an achilles injury, but is set to return against the Dogs at Etihad Stadium.
"He should be right. It was quite an innocuous issue with his ankle, achilles area," Geelong coach Chris Scott said yesterday. "We didn't think he'd miss at all, and now he's missed two. That's more a reflection of our conservatism than the seriousness of that injury.
A shoulder injury in the VFL halts Geelong young gun Nathan Vardy's return to senior ranks. Picture: Leanne Churchill Source: Herald Sun
"We'd be staggered if he didn't play this week."
Vardy, who played two games late last year after returning from serious hip surgery, will play in the VFL on Sunday.
"It's really exciting to get Vards back. He needs to get some football under his belt. We're not going to rush him back at all," Scott said.
"In fact, he could have played the last couple of weeks, but we decided to be ultra-conservative with him and we'll continue that through the next few weeks with his VFL program.
"I expect it's going to be difficult because he'll play well at VFL level, but we will resist the temptation to get him back into the AFL system because we'd rather be safe than sorry.
"Some of the feedback we're getting is that it's just too conservative, but if that's a mistake we make then I can live with that."
Josh Walker will return after injuring his shoulder in the first VFL game of the season four weeks ago, while Josh Hunt, who has battled back from glandular fever and a shoulder issue, will spend more time in the VFL.
"(Hunt) has got some more footy at VFL level. He played very well on the weekend, he was clearly one of the best players on the ground, but he's coming off a very limited preparation," Scott said.
"Josh is going to be important for us, certainly in the last half of the season. Similarly to our younger players, we've got to make sure he's well and truly ready to play his best before he steps up to AFL level."
Ruckman Hamish McIntosh, who is battling an achilles injury after having pre-season knee surgery, is still at least a couple of weeks away from a return.
"Dawson Simpson's the other one who's not too far away. We'd love to have Simpson, Vardy, McIntosh available, Walker will play this week as well, so we're slowly getting those (tall) guys back into the system," Scott said.
"We very much see those guys as a unit that works together. We certainly won't be deciding on our best two and sticking with them every single week.
"It's healthy for our group that we're starting to get some of those guys backs into our system."
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